6 Ways To Secure A Job

There are a lot of people, especially college students, who are searching for jobs. Those looking for work often struggle to distinguish themselves from other competitors. So, it is necessary to make sure you are doing your best to get the job you yearn for. Here are six ways to make yourself stand out for a potential position.

1. Use online services.

People rely on the Internet much more than they know. No matter what type of job you are looking for, you can use online services to find plenty of positions. You can always post on Facebook asking if anyone is hiring, but there are usually sites where you can specifically find jobs tailored to your interests or education. For example, SnagAJob.com, Indeed and Craigslist are all different ways to search for opportunities. These online services are designed to help you find jobs in your area, jobs that are full-time or part-time and jobs with varying rates. Many of these sites are free, so it is always worth a try.

2. Polish your resume.

This may sound obvious, but there are often small things that can make your resume much more noticeable than the next person's. Sometimes people clump together every job they had on their resumes. Instead of doing that, you can write up your resume to make it match the job you're aiming for. Looking for a teaching position? Put down experiences you've had in which you worked with children or provided education-oriented services. You can also use college services or the help of friends to polish your resume.

3. Apply for small positions.

Some people aim for the stars and try to get themselves impressive careers. If you can find yourself a good job, that's great, but you also need to realize that small positions can lead to big things. Building upon your "small" job can make a difference. If you apply to a job at a coffee place, for example, you can continue to work there and stand out. When that happens, you may very well be promoted or given more work hours, meaning more money. Try to apply for those small positions because they can help you out in the long run.

4. Learn some skills.

If you truly want to distinguish yourself, you can find different skills to learn and put on your resume. For example, learning how to handle Excel and Microsoft Word. You would be surprised at how many employers don't really understand how to use these programs completely. Some aren't even sure how to pivot tables in Excel! So when you become the person who can navigate his or her way around the program, you become the employee they want. Not only that, but having typing skills, coding knowledge or the ability to speak other languages can be important tools to securing a job.

5. Find connections through family or friends.

Unfortunately or fortunately, opportunities often come down to who you know. Talk to relatives or friends. Some of them may have know an employer who wants to hire someone. Not only can they help you find a position somewhere, relatives and friends can help put in a good word. If you have a good relationship with them, they can be the best reference you'll ever have. There are also more people in your area looking to hire than you know. I have relied on my family many times to help me look for job opportunities, and I have always been surprised to see how many families in my neighborhood want to hire a tutor. So use all your resources!

6. Find help at your current workplace.

Make friends where you work. This is essential to furthering your personal career. It is always good to know someone at work, but making true friendships can help when you want to move on to a different job. Just like finding connections through relatives, you can search for work through coworkers. Instead of sitting quietly by yourself, talk to other people in the workplace. If you can do that, you may find someone who knows employers hiring. You want to do everything you can to secure a job, so try out these methods!

5 Perks Of Having A Long-Distance Best Friend

Sometimes, people get annoyed when girls refer to multiple people as their "best friend," but they don't understand. We have different types of best friends. There's the going out together best friend, the see each other everyday best friend and the constant, low maintenance best friend.

While I'm lucky enough to have two out of the three at the same school as me, my "low maintenance" best friend goes to college six hours from Baton Rouge.

This type of friend is special because no matter how long you go without talking or seeing each other, you're always insanely close. Even though I miss her daily, having a long-distance best friend has its perks. Here are just a few of them...

1. Getting to see each other is a special event.

Sometimes when you see someone all the time, you take that person and their friendship for granted. When you don't get to see one of your favorite people very often, the times when you're together are truly appreciated.

2. You always have someone to give unbiased advice.

This person knows you best, but they probably don't know the people you're telling them about, so they can give you better advice than anyone else.

3. You always have someone to text and FaceTime.

While there may be hundreds of miles between you, they're also just a phone call away. You know they'll always be there for you even when they can't physically be there.

4. You can plan fun trips to visit each other.

When you can visit each other, you get to meet the people you've heard so much about and experience all the places they love. You get to have your own college experience and, sometimes, theirs, too.

5. You know they will always be a part of your life.

If you can survive going to school in different states, you've both proven that your friendship will last forever. You both care enough to make time for the other in the midst of exams, social events, and homework.

3 Struggles Of Attending A Pre-Med Dominated University — No Matter What Your Major Is

Even though we as college students are technically considered adults, we are still burdened by stress at a young age. Especially in a pre-med oriented school, we feel pressured to keep up with or even surpass the achievements of others as we struggle to maintain our busy schedules while attempting to balance what little time we have left for ourselves. It's a sad reality.

1. The competition

Coming from a very pre-med oriented university, I can't help but feel the competitive vibes around me. During the lecture, I can hear the students around me ask their peers what score they received on the most recent midterm while others boast about how busy they are during the week because of all of the things that they are doing outside of the classroom.

It's this dog eat dog environment and constant comparison that makes students and myself included feel as if we are somehow lagging behind or not doing as much as we should be doing so we push ourselves even harder to keep up. As much as we don't want to, we have the tendency to measure our success in terms of others' success, and this, in turn, makes it more difficult for us to focus on ourselves. Now, I'm sure that you've been told not to compare yourself to others, but in the end, isn't that how you gain admission into medical school? By being compared to others? It's all relative.

2. The authenticity

It's not rare to see a pre-med student taking 18 or more credits while trying to squeeze in some volunteer work, a campus job, and even some research hours all into one day. At times, however, I question whether or not they truly want to do all of these things, but at the same time, I understand that they feel pressured to embody the "ideal" medical school applicant.

One of my friends once said to me, "I need to beef up my resume", and it's sad to see how she now feels constantly pressured to apply for a volunteer position or a job because of this. I also see others dread the work that they do, but they continue to stick with it and overload themselves because they believe that is what admissions officers want to see. I am a firm believer of doing something because you genuinely want to and not because you feel like you have to, yet this mentality gets lost as one becomes so immersed in meeting the requirements of the medical school.

3. The balance

While doing well in your classes is important, so is eating, showering, and sleeping. In fact, I think that one's physical and mental health triumphs all else. I recall the hectic week that one of my friends recently pushed through. She had a weekend class and an exam as part of something she pursues on the side, and that same week, we had a chemistry midterm followed by a biology one and not to mention all of the other assignments we had due in between. My friend already felt tired and burnt out from the weekend, and this led her to miss a lecture and some homework assignments. She even went a day without eating an actual meal.

With only a bag of popcorn for dinner one night, she stayed up until FOUR in the morning to catch up on what she had missed during the day. Many of my other friends who are pre-med struggle to balance academics, extracurriculars, leisure time, and maintenance of their overall health because there is always a trade-off. There are only 24 hours in a day, and one thing has to be sacrificed in order to obtain the other, and I wish it wasn't this way.